US whistleblower Edward Snowden asked for asylum in Russia, but later withdrew the request after President Putin urged him to cease "anti-American activity," according to the President's spokesperson.

“Snowden did ask to stay in Russia. However, when he found out
Russia’s position on the matter and the associated conditions he
decided not to stay in Russia,” said Kremlin spokesperson
Dmitry Peskov. Snowden is still held up in a Moscow airport and
has issued asylum bids to 15 countries, the spokesman
added.

Peskov told press that Russia does not relinquish political
asylum seekers to countries with the death penalty.

“Snowden, by sincere conviction or for some other reason,
considers himself to be a human rights activist, a fighter for
the ideals of democracy and human freedom. Russian human rights
activists and organizations, as well as their colleagues abroad
acknowledge this. For this reason, extraditing Snowden to a
country like the US where capital punishment is enforced is
impossible,” Peskov explained to press.

Furthermore, Peskov stressed that Snowden is currently in the
transit zone area of Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport and had never
crossed the Russian border. He added that the Russian authorities
are not engaged in active dialogue with the former CIA employee
and “have never collaborated with Snowden.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin stated on Monday that Snowden could
stay in the Russian Federation on the condition that he ceased
all anti-American activity. Furthermore, Putin affirmed that
Russia has no intention of extraditing Snowden as “Russia has
never extradited anyone.”

However, Snowden is no longer in a position to harm the US, as
all the information he has, has already been leaked to
journalists and so it is up to them when and if further
revelations that are damaging to the US are released, James
Corbett, an independent journalist and editor of the Corbett
Report, told RT.

As such, Putin’s comments - that he stops leaking information -
are on face value meaningless.

“It’s a question of what we make of the offer itself and
really I think there’s not much more to it than political blather
that’s aimed to shore up the Moscow Washington relationship,
rather than anything to do with Snowden and what he’s talking
about,” said Corbett.

The former CIA employee, responsible for releasing troves of NSA
classified data to the press, is stuck in Moscow’s Sheremetyevo
for the time being. The whistleblower has applied for asylum in
21 countries, according to the organization
WikiLeaks, who claims to be helping Snowden get political asylum.